PCC backs teenagers’ CSE awareness app

Five teenage girls from Hull have launched their own mobile app to raise awareness of online bullying and child sexual exploitation, with the help of funding from the Humberside police and crime commissioner (PCC).

Calling themselves ‘The Care Monkeys’, the girls came up with the idea in summer 2013 as part of Humberside Police’s ‘Lifestyle’ youth engagement project. Working with Hull’s sexual health advice service Cornerhouse, the five girls, Megan Baker, Ellie Baynes, Emma Bosley, Chloe Quinn and Jessica Snelgrove, spoke to other young people about what help they would like to see on bullying, cyber-bullying and advice on online protection. They entered their idea for a mobile advice app into the Lifestyle competition and made it to the final, where PCC Matthew Grove was one of the judges.

He said he was so impressed with their idea that he committed to jointly fund it with local partnership Headstart to make it a reality.

“This is a local project that we all hope will spread far and wide across the country to help protect young people,” said Mr Grove. “Today’s teenagers often take far more notice of people their own age than those of us in authority so I’m delighted to see the finished product, designed by young people for young people.”

The app provides advice, support and security to young people in vulnerable situations, and is designed to appeal to a demographic of around nine to 16 years old.

The Care Monkey is the main character within the app and young people interact with the monkey, answering very basic questions to determine their problem and directing them to a point of action or advice. Points of referral in the app include organisations such as the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP).

The app is designed to be a safe zone for the young person and its logo is disguised on a phone to make it look like a game. It also has a panic button built in to quickly hide the app should the person be in a vulnerable situation.

All external sources, such as CEOP and others, are all brought within the app, so the young person is never directed to external links.

The Care Monkeys app was developed by Hull-based company YesYesBD using £10,000 of funding jointly provided by Mr Grove and Headstart, a partnership between Hull City Council, NHS Hull Clinical Commissioning Group, schools, CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) and voluntary sector organisations, including Cornerhouse and Child Dynamix. It provides a wealth of information for young people, their parents and carers, and is designed to work on all mobile platforms.